South Korea’s Park gets personal in US missile system row

South Korean President Park Geun-hye on Tuesday evoked memories of her parents’ assassination as she hit back at opposition to the planned deployment of an advanced US anti-missile system in South Korea.

Thousands of South Korean residents hold up red banners reading “We absolutely oppose THAAD deployment”, during a rally against the planned deployment of the US-built Terminal High Altitude Area Defense in Seongju town

The defense ministry announced last month that the Terminal High Altitude Area Defence system, or THAAD, will be installed in Seongju — a rural county about 200 kilometers (135 miles) southeast of Seoul — by the end of next year.

The decision was predicated on the growing threat posed by North Korea’s advancing nuclear weapons and ballistic missile program.

Protesting Seongju residents have alleged that the system’s powerful radar poses health and environmental hazards, while opposition lawmakers have been less than supportive of the move. Read More